Valve reseating tool



ug. 23,1949. o. F. STETZEL I VALVE RESEATING TOOL Filed June 5, 1947 mum 4 2/ w 97 INVENTOR. ffiE Patented Aug. 23, 1949 UNITED STATE s PATENT OFFICE VALVE RESEATING TOOL Otto F. Stetzel, Cleveland, Ohio Application June 5, 1947, Serial No. 752,711

1 Claim. 1

My present inventioninvolves certain novel improvements in tools for reseating valves of bibbs or faucets.

A primary object of my invention has been to improve upon the type of construction of tools of the class above mentioned, as disclosed in United States patent to Tekavec, 1,899,598 issued February 28, 1933. The construction of reseating tool of the above patent, and that which I have newly invented, involves the use of a manually rotatable tool feeding stem or screw member equipped at its lower end with a cutting tool for cutting or reaming off the valve seat of the faucet, said tool being carried by a supporting member equipped with a locking bushing having swivelin connection with said member, the said bushing being internally threaded so that the screw portion of the tool feed stem may have screw threaded connection with the bushing. The'swiveling action between the tool feed stem and said supporting member is obtained by employment of instrumentalities for locking the lock bushing to the tool feeding stem, after preliminary operation'of the said stem by its screw engagement with the lock bushing to cause the tool on the stem to take the first bite engaging action with the valve seat.

The improvements of my invention involve primarily the construction of the lock bushing and the manipulative lock means carried thereon for eifecting the locking engagement between the bushing and the steam to produce the swiveling action of the tool stem after it has been preliminarily operated to take the necessary bite into the metal of the seat. By the employment of my invention the tool stem will always be maintained centralized in regard to the seat notwithstanding the manipulation of the locking means throughout the life of the tool unit, for performing the many reseating operations that will be performed by the tool in its common use.

A secondary feature of my invention lies in the special construction of lock bushing and its mode of assembly in relation to the supporting member by which the tool is connected with the upper threaded portion of the faucet, after the ordinary valve and its stem have been removed preliminary to the reseating operation.

A full understanding of my invention will be had upon reference to the following detailed description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, and in said drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a valve reseating tool embodying the essential features of my invention.

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of the said tool, the lock bushing shown as when it is compressed by the locking screw on the carrier associated with the bushing, thereby to prevent the relative rotation of the tool stem in said bushing, but permitting the swiveling action of the bushing with the stem, upon the supporting member attached to the faucet.

Figure 3 is a cross sectional view taken on a horizontal line approximating the longitudinal center of the locking screw as illustrated in Figure 2 and also Figure 1. V

Figure 4 is a vertical sectional View similar to Figure 2, showing a portion of a modified form of my tool unit. Referring now to the drawings of my invention it will beseen that my tool comprises generally certain parts such as have heretofore been used in tools for like purposes known to the prior art. Thus I employ a cutting tool supporting and feeding stem l which is longitudinally threaded nearly its entire length and which carries at its lower end in a detachable manner a common form of seat cutting tool. At the upper end of the stem l, I provide a suitable handle 3 which in the present instance is illustrated as a bar handle, but a round handle may be substituted for the bar handle, if desired, or preferred.

For mounting myfseat cutting tool upon the faucet I have'recourse to the usual kind of supporting member 4, the same comprising a hollow body the hollow portion ofwhich converges upwardly and the internal surface of which hollow portion is formed with screw threads of grad ually reducing diameter, enabling the supporting member 4 to be screwed upon the upper screw threaded portions offaucets when said portions are of different diameter, this usually depending upon the size of the faucet or bibb which is to be reseated. Likewise under certain conditions, when desirable for use, there may be employed in conjunction with the supporting member 4 an adapter member 5 adapted to be screwed into the lower end portion of the member 4 for enabling the mounting of my reseating tool in operative position upon faucets the upper threaded portions of which are smaller than such portions as maybe engaged by means of the threaded portion of the supporting'member l proper.

Generally speaking the above mentioned parts, with the cutting tool feeding and supporting stem i mounted centrally of the supporting member 4, are known in the prior art.

Referring now particularly to the features of my construction that improve upon devices of the same class heretofore proposed, I note that I employ in conjunction with the supporting member 4 a lock bushing designated 6. This bushing 6 is provided with an annular outwardly projecting flange I at its lower end which flange is adapted to be seated against an end shoulder portion 8 of the supporting member 4 internally of the latter. The lock bushing 6 is of uniform diameter upwardly from the flange 1, and is held in place on the supporting member 4 by means of a collar 9 which is slipped over the upper portion of the bushing 6 and when brought into slipping abutment with the shoulder portion 8 of the member 4 said collar is press-fitted tightly to the bushing 6 so as to be substantially nonremovable relatively to the latter. By the provision of the collar 9 and flange 1 of the bushing, cooperating with the shoulder portion 8 of the member 4 at opposite sides thereof, it will be evident that the bushing 6 has a swivel connection with the supporting member 4, the function of which will be more clear hereinafter.

As seen by dotted lines in Figure 2, and more clearly illustrated in Figure 3, the lock bushing 6 is formed at opposite side portions with longitudinal or vertical slots I0. These slots extend from points about in line with the upper surface of the collar 9 to the upper end of the bushing 6, and their provision enables the upper end portion of the bushing to be compressible by movement of the half sections on opposite sides of the slots, toward each other. In this manner, as by compression of the portions of the bushings 6 at opposite sides of the slots ID, the threads of the bushing may be caused to tightly engage the threaded portion of the tool feeding stem I in a locking manner. For facilitating the resilient action of the half sections of the bushing 6 adjacent to the slots I0 I provide in the outer surface of the bushing, adjacent to the collar 9, an annular recess II.

Surrounding the upper portion of the bushing 6 is a carrier member I2 which supports a locking screw I3 readily manipulatable to advance its inner end toward and in engagement with the adjacent side of the bushing 6 for the purpose of springing the portions of the bushing at opposite sides of the slot ID into locking engagement with the threads of the stem I'. member I3 is so adjusted, the same being a common form of thumb screw, the stem I will not be permitted to move rotatively in relation to the carrier member I2 and the bushing 6. Preferably the bushing 6 will be formed with a slight I recess I4 in the outer surface of the adjacent side thereof in relation to the member I3, this recess establishing an interlocking connection between the member I3 and the bushing 6 so as to maintain the part l3 always in its proper position for effecting the compressing together of the portions of the bushing 6 at opposite sides of the slot I6.

With the construction of my invention set forth in the above manner the operation of the same will be readily understood, with the following explanation:

My tool is mounted upon the bibb or faucet in the manner of common use of these tools as heretofore employed, using either the supporting member 4 or the adapter supporting member 5 for connection of the unit with the threaded portion of the faucet at the top or above the valve seat, upon removing the valve stem and removable upper valve member that normally co-operates with the valve seat. In this manner the tool When the locking feeding stem I is centralized with the tool 2 above and engaging on top of the seat which is to be reamed or cut away in the customary manner. With the cutting tool 2 engaging the seat and the bushing 6 loose in relation to the screw threaded portion of the stem I, by turning the stem I the threaded engagement of its threads with the threads of the bushing 6 will feed downwardly the cutting tool 2 so that the latter will take a bite or engage to the metal of the seat.

It will be evident that in the above operation the clockwise turning of the stem' I' produces a feeding effect downwardly of the stem with the cutting tool by the action of the interengaging screw threads of the members I and 6.

The next step for the reforming of the valve seat is for the operator to turn the locking member or thumb screw I3 so that the latter moves inwardly on the carrier I2 to compress the side portions of the upper end of the bushing 6 at opposite sides of the slot I0 toward each other and into locking or immovable engagement with the threads of the stem I. The foregoing having been accomplished the bushing 6, collar 9, and the carrier I2 are locked to the feeding stem I of the cutter '2 and further rotation of the stem I will merely cause rotation of the bushing 6 and the parts I2 and 9 carried on the bushing, with the bushing 6 swiveling on the supporting member a without any advancing or feeding movement of the cutter 2.

The last operation above described will cut away a thickness of metal from the valve seat equivalent to the extent of the bite initially taken by the cutting tool 2 according to its first rotative feed movement above described. It may be necessary to take several of the bites in order to flatten the valve seat properly to restore its eificiency and under these conditions the above mentioned two operations as described, may be repeated one or more times in order to accomplish the desired result in reaming off the metal of the seat properly to provide proper co-operation thereof with the valve later to be restored after the tool unit of my invention is removed from the faucet.

It is notable that the formation of the bushing 6 and the manner of locking the same to the tool feeding stem I requires that the resilient or compressible portions of the upper end of the bushing 6 be pressed against the threads of the stem I from opposite directions. For the above reason, as regards the action of the bushing 6 when being locked to the stem I, the pressure forces of the locking member being exerted equally from opposite directions toward opposite sides of the stem avoids any possibility of wear on the stem in one direction such as to throw the same off center in relation to the axis of the valve seat, which might result in an improper cutting action of the cutter 2 which would be correspondingly thrown off center because concentrically mounted upon the stem I.

Referring to the modification illustrated in Figure 4, I employ in this form of the device a bushing I6 having a conically tapered exterior configuration provided with screw thread I I of gradually increasing diameter from top to bottom or axially from end to end. The clamping device I8, which is adapted to surround the bushing I6 after the manner of the carrier mem-- ber I2 of the clamping device illustrated in Figure 2, is provided with an interior screw thread I9 of constant diameter less than the maximum 75 diameter of the screw thread H, the threads I! and I9 being adapted to co-operate for screwing of the clamping device l8 upon the bushing I6. The tool of the modified form illustrated in Figure 4 is employed similarly to that illustrated in the Figures 1 to 3 and after the stem I has been rotated to advance the cutting tool the desired distance axially preliminarily, the clamping device I8 is then rotated to screw the same downwardly relative to the bushing I6, thereby causing the bushing I8 to be clamped tightly to the stem I to prevent relative rotation between the stem I and bushing Hi. It will be understood of course that the bushing I6 is interiorly threaded after the manner of the bushing 6 for co-operation with the threaded portion of the stem I.

The bushing I8 is of course provided with the longitudinal or vertical slots 20 at opposite side portions of the bushing, the slots extending from points about in line with the upper surface of the collar 9 to the upper end of the bushing Hi. The slots 20 are equivalent to the slots Ill in the bushing B and have the same function. The bushing IE will also be provided with the annular groove 2I for the same purpose as the annular groove II of the bushing 6.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

In a valve reseating tool, in combination, a threaded tool feeding stem, a seat cutter carried at one end thereof, a member to rotate the stem, a supporting member having means to connect the same to a faucet and through which the stem passes, a bushing through which the stem passes and having screw threads to engage those of the stem, said bushing being swivelly connected to one end of the said supporting member, a carrier member adjacent to the bushing, and means on the carrier member to clamp the bushing from opposite directions against the stem to establish locking engagement of the bushing and stem preventing relative rotation of these parts the bushing being formed with longitudinal slots at one end to render the portions thereof at opposite sides of the slots yieldable toward each other, and the clamping means comprising a screw arranged on the carrier member at one side of said slots and rectilinearly of the stem and bushing and operable to control pressing of the said portions of the bushing into locking engagement with the stem, and to permit apart movement of the said portions enabling relative rotation of the stem and bushing, said carrier and said bushing having a smooth, sliding reciprocal fit.

OTTO F. STETZEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PA'IENTS- Number Name Date 1,325,278 Dexter et al. Dec. 16, 1919 1,899,598 Tekavec Feb. 28, 1933 2,044,938 Ferrell June 23, 1936 

